Popular GirlNerd
by empresskris
Summary: QW13 - Quinntana Week Day 1 prompt: Popular Girl/Nerd


Quinn never understood the locker assignments. Since middle school she had been stuck next to the jocks and the cheerleaders. None of their last names came close to each other in the alphabet and she certainly didn't share classes with most of them. So why she was stuck sharing locker space with any of them was still a giant mystery to her, even now, her senior year.

It became a mantra for her: get in and get out. Between classes, Quinn would rush to her locker, hopefully beating her classmates there, and grab her books as quickly as possible to avoid any sort of face to face time. But on occasion she would stay after class to talk to her teachers and she would have to push her way through the football players and cheerleaders in order to switch out her books. Today was one of those days.

With a deep breath Quinn slipped past the couple talking closely to her right and quickly spun the dial on her locker, opening it and hoping to grab her Advanced Physics book without any sort of incident.

No such luck.

As she tried to desperately shove the book into her shoulder bag, a large, beast-like body bumped roughly into her. The book slammed loudly on the linoleum floor, along with all her notes she had stuck haphazardly within the pages of the text.

"Watch it, four eyes."

Noah Puckerman. Quinn didn't have to turn around to know the cause of the jolt or the rude comment that followed. He was the reason for the majority of her locker mishaps. And she had been forced to share a locker next to him since freshman year. She just didn't understand it.

Quinn sighed and crouched to pick up her notes. There went her 32 day 'incident free' streak.

Movement in front of her made Quinn glance up, a pair of tan legs leading to a short red skirt stopped in front of her. Quinn blushed as she tried to gather her papers as quickly as possible. It was bad enough getting ridiculed by the jocks, but the cheerleaders were far worse.

"Don't be such an asshole," the girl with the nice legs spat before crouching down and reaching for her book.

Quinn lifted her eyes and met a scowling face. Only, it wasn't directed at her. "What?" Puck questioned. "She was in my way!"

Quinn swallowed hard when brown eyes met her own and the girl's face softened. Santana Lopez, Head Cheerio, most popular girl at McKinley High School, and girlfriend of Quarterback Noah Puckerman, was crouched down in front of her.

Santana reached for the fallen book. She closed the cover and handed it back to Quinn with a small smile. "Don't mind him he's like that with everyone."

"I've noticed," Quinn said taking the book. Santana arched an eyebrow. "Thanks," she said as she awkwardly stood.

Quinn glanced at Noah watching the exchange with a curious look and brushed past the cheerleader still crouched on the ground as she rushed to class.

* * *

Quinn scanned the almost empty parking lot and then checked her watch with a sigh. Her mother was late. Again. She placed her bag on the steps and sat down beside it, bringing her book to her lap.

A loose strand of hair escaped her ponytail and she tucked it behind her ear. She shivered slightly and reached for her V-neck sweater. As she pulled the sweater over her head, the material caught in her glasses and she became tangled, reaching up to tug at the fabric to free herself.

She sighed in frustration as she readjusted her glasses and tried to straighten the sweater over-top of her long sleeved shirt. She knew her hair was sticking up all over place, but instead of bothering to fix it, she pulled her book closer into her lap and picked up where she left off.

Quinn heard light footsteps behind her but she didn't bother to look. She learned very quickly the best way to avoid interaction with others was to ignore that they were there.

This time, however, her logic didn't work. She tensed as she felt someone stop beside her. "Do you need a ride?"

Quinn looked up from her book and squinted at the silhouette standing over her. She brought her hand up to shield the setting sun and made out the word CHEER in large letters on figure's t-shirt. "What? No thank you. My mother should be here shortly." As if on cue, Quinn's phone buzzed. She looked down at the text message from her mother with a frown. "Or not. She's running late."

Santana smirked and stepped out of the sun and in front of Quinn. She adjusted her cheer bag over her shoulder and nodded towards the parking lot. "Come on, grab your stuff. I'll take you home."

"That's very generous, but I can just wait - "

"Where do you live?" Santana asked cutting off Quinn's protest.

"Dudley Road."

"Great! Dudley is on my way home. So, grab your stuff and let's go." Without waiting for Quinn to respond, Santana spun on her heels and made her way towards her car.

Quinn watched until the girl stopped and turned back to Quinn motioning for her to follow. Quinn had no idea what was happening. She glanced behind her to see if this were some sort of prank. The two were alone. She thought about shouting that should probably just wait for her mother, but Santana called out for her to hurry up. Collecting her things, Quinn slowly made her way towards the car.

Santana smiled and slipped into the car, smirking as Quinn did the same. "Metaphysics?" Santana nodded towards Quinn's book. "Pretty heavy don't you think?" She asked as she fastened her seat belt and started the car.

Quinn fastened her seat belt as well and glanced at the small Cheer Horn dangling from the rearview mirror. She wasn't sure why she agreed to this. She gripped her book tightly. "It fascinates me."

Santana hummed indifferently. She turned out of the school parking lot and reached to turn on the radio. "Why are you here so late?"

"Math club and then Chess team," Quinn said casually.

Santana arched an eyebrow and couldn't help the smile that stretched across her lips. "We have a chess _team?_" She glanced at Quinn and chuckled in amusement. "What other clubs and _teams_ do you belong to?"

Quinn stared at the window and shrugged. "Debate team."

"And the marching band," Santana added. "And I thought cheerios and glee club were time consuming." Quinn looked over at her curiously. Santana smiled softly. "I watch you at halftime. Flute right?" Quinn nodded; stunned that Santana would know such things about her. "You guys are pretty good."

"Thank you," Quinn blushed. They drove in silence for several minutes, the radio softly playing a song Quinn didn't recognize in the background. She glanced at Santana, her eyes knitting together in confusion.

How was it that one minute she was Quinn Fabray, nerd extraordinaire, sitting in front of the school waiting for a ride from her mother, and the next she was sitting in the head cheerleader's car listening as the Cheerio showed interest in her extracurricular activities? It didn't make sense and made her extremely nervous. The last time a popular girl had shown _any _sort of interest in her was two years previous. Lydia Connors. Quinn had spent the second half of her sophomore year as the joke of the school. It had all been a game, a ruse. Lydia hadn't been interested in Quinn at all. She was only interested in someone doing her homework and having someone to help her cheat on exams. Quinn had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker. Not only had she been ousted, but she had been used.

The lesbian nerd who thought the pretty gymnast really liked her. It was mortifying.

But this… this was something else entirely. Santana was smart, a straight A student who didn't need to associate with her with for the sake of her grades. She knew Santana was bi-curious, the entire school was aware of her extracurricular actives with her fellow Cheerios at parties, but she was currently dating the quarterback. She was considered royalty. And Quinn, well, she was just a peasant. Why was Santana being nice to her? She wasn't quite sure what Santana's angle was.

"It's not true you know," Santana said breaking Quinn's thoughts. She glanced at the Quinn and licked her lips. "The rumors," she continued. Quinn furrowed her brows clearly not following. Santana rolled her eyes with a sigh as she turned back to the road. "About my boobs. They aren't fake."

Quinn blushed and turned away from her, looking out the windshield. She wasn't sure where that comment had come from. She was _fairly _certain she hadn't been staring at Santana's chest.

"I hadn't heard that particular rumor," Quinn stuttered. Santana glanced at Quinn and shook her head. She knew Quinn was lying. Everyone had heard the rumors.

They drove the rest of the way home in silence.

As the car pulled up to her house, Quinn still hadn't figured out Santana's angle. And she definitely didn't understand why the most popular girl in school would talk to her about gossip or share any of her secrets with her. She turned towards the cheerleader as she put the car in park. "Why do you care?" Santana arched an eyebrow. "About whether or not I know the truth about your breasts?"

Santana shrugged. "I don't know," she admitted.

Quinn nodded and glanced at her house. "Well, thank you for the ride." She reached for the handle and grabbed her shoulder bag, tucking her book securely under her arm as she slipped out of the car. She shut the door and turned to walk away when the passenger's window behind her lowered.

"Do you take the bus?" Santana called out as she leaned towards the open window.

Quinn turned back to the car and pushed her glasses up her nose. "Yes I do."

"Not anymore. I'll pick you up at 6:45," Santana insisted. Quinn opened her mouth to protest but the cheerleader flashed her a smile. "See you tomorrow, Q!"

Quinn watched dumbfounded as Santana drove away from her house.

* * *

To say that Quinn was surprised to see Santana waiting outside of her house at exactly 6:45 the next morning would be an understatement. She thought for sure she would be a no show and consequently Quinn would miss the bus. Seeing her red sports car pull up in the front of her house was a relief.

Quinn made her way to the car and slipped in the passenger's seat, dropping her bag at her feet. Santana was wearing her Cheerio's uniform, like she always did during football season, and her eyes were covered by huge sunglasses.

"Good morning," Quinn said pulling the door closed. Santana hummed and pulled away from her house.

As they drove down Dudley, Santana held out a Starbucks cup in Quinn's direction. "Wasn't sure how you liked it so I just got it black."

Quinn stared at the coffee cup briefly before taking it. "Thank you," she said looking over at Santana. The Cheerio shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. But for Quinn it was a very big deal. No one had ever bought her coffee before. She took a small sip and tried not to let her smile take over her face. "This is…good," she said with a nod.

* * *

Quinn lifted her eyes from her notes and watched as Santana twirled the ends of her hair around her finger as she read. Her hair was still wet from showering after Cheer practice and she now donning a red McKinley hoodie and most of her make-up had been removed. Quinn thought she looked beautiful.

The two had fallen into a routine over the past couple weeks. Santana would drive Quinn to and from school and bring her coffee every morning, and Quinn waited for the punch line. But yet, it still hadn't come. Instead, she found herself smiling at Santana in the hallways and talking to her about things such as her early application to Yale. Santana was still undecided but Quinn assured her wherever she went it would be a great school. Santana even blushed when Quinn voiced her opinions aloud.

They had agreed to stay late after school to study, an AP Government text right around the corner. But for Quinn, studying was proving to be difficult with Santana playing with her hair like that.

"You're staring," Santana commented without taking her eyes off of her notes. Quinn cleared her throat and blushed, focusing back on her textbook. Santana smirked and sat back in her chair, closing her books. "Do you need a ride to game tomorrow night?"

Quinn shook her head and took off her glasses. She placed them on top of her notes and rubbed at her eyes, tired from staring at her textbook. "No, thank you, my mom is taking me."

Santana nodded and stared as Quinn pushed her unruly hair from her face. "You have really pretty eyes you know that?"

Quinn froze. She felt the color rise to her cheeks and she reached for her glasses. "Thank you," she said avoiding eye contact and slipping the large black frames back on her face.

"Can I ask you something?" Santana asked resting on her forearms and leaning forward on the table. Quinn glanced up at the other girl with a small nod. "Why aren't you dating anyone?"

Quinn couldn't help it. She laughed. "Yeah, because that went over _so_ well the last time," she said closing her books. Clearly it was time to stop studying. Santana was becoming delirious.

Santana watched her for a moment and then began packing up her own study materials. "Lydia was an idiot," she murmured shoving her books in her backpack.

Quinn looked over at Santana but the Cheerio didn't meet her gaze.

* * *

Quinn loved being in the marching band. She enjoyed being a part of such an amazing group of people. Her best friends were in band and being able to spend so much time with them made her happy. It was one of the few places where she felt like she truly belonged.

She loved performing and taking the field to march, whether it was for a competition or for the halftime shows at their football games. There was just something about performing in front of so many people that she relished. It was the closest she would ever come to being "popular". It didn't matter that the crowd was clapping because the Cheerios were telling them to, or because their football team was dominating. It was applause, for them, and it made her straighten in her stance with pride.

"Ow, ow! Lookin' good marching band!" Quinn glanced up at the familiar voice. Her eyes landed on Santana, directly in front of her leaning against the chain linked fence, a smile on her face. Her brown eyes were fixated solely on her. Quinn swallowed the lump in her throat and flicked her eyes to Tina standing beside her.

"What the hell?" Tina whispered turning her head to look at Quinn.

Quinn ignored her, and ignored that Tina shouldn't have been moving at all, and turned her eyes towards the drum major, her instrument at the ready. He cued the drum line and a few measures later, the band kicked in and they started marching. Quinn's eyes dropped back to Santana quickly, the girl's smile larger, as she continued to stare.

Quinn tore her eyes away and tried her best to focus on the show.

When their routine was over, and the band had successfully left the field for the dance team to perform, Quinn felt exhilarated. She loved the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She waved back to her mom in the stands and unbuttoned the top hook of her uniform, relaxing a bit.

Quinn let her flute rest by her side and she pushed her swept bangs from her face as the band slowly made their way over to their section in the bleachers. "Quinn!" she looked over her shoulder and froze. Santana was motioning her over. "Fabray, come here!"

"Why is Santana Lopez calling you over?" Tina asked stepping up beside the blonde. "What the hell did you do?"

"I have no idea," Quinn mumbled as her feet slowly took her towards the cheerleader. Sure they talked in private and sometimes in their government class, but rarely in the hallways and never at school functions like football games. Quinn knew better. Socially, the two just didn't mix.

Santana ran her eyes up and down Quinn's polyester clad body, her eyes landing on the white plume sticking up from her hat and smirked. Quinn thought for sure this was it; the moment where Santana would completely humiliate her in front of the entire stadium. She couldn't help but tense. "Good job out there," Santana said leaning her hip against the fence.

"Um, thanks?" Quinn's hat slid forward and she pushed it back further on her head. "Good job to you too," she offered motioning to where the rest of the Cheerio's were getting ready to close out the halftime performances. Santana arched an eyebrow. "You know, with all the…flips… and stuff…"

Santana chucked and shook her head. "Your chin strap a little tight there, Fabray?" she asked reaching out to hook her finger under the plastic. "You're babbling." Quinn blushed and cleared her throat, dropping her gaze. Santana laughed and retracted her hand. "Look, Puck is having a party tonight. You should come. You can even bring your friend," she nodded towards Tina watching them curiously from the bleachers.

Quinn's eyes widened and she shook her head frantically. "Oh… um, no. No thank you."

Santana's face fell. "Why not? Do you have other plans?"

Quinn laughed. "No, no plans."

"Come on, it'll be fun," she coaxed.

"I'm sure it will be, but parties just aren't for me," Quinn smiled awkwardly. "Besides, I have some reading I want to catch up on."

"You read all the time, Q. Come out with me," Santana pleaded.

Quinn looked at her. She sounded genuine enough, and the pleading look in her eyes was tempting… "Thank you, but I'm going to have to decline."

Santana smile faltered. "Another time maybe."

Quinn nodded. "Another time," she agreed.

Santana glanced over her shoulder at the squad heading on the field. "Well, I'll see you later then," she said pushing off of the fence.

"Good luck!" Quinn called after the cheerleader. Santana looked over her shoulder and smiled.

* * *

The first time her phone buzzed Quinn ignored it. The second time she glanced at the vibrating object but didn't pick it up. The third time however had her curious. She put down her book next to her on the bed and reached for her phone on the nightstand, scrolling through the messages.

12:41 Are you still up?

12:54: I'm coming over.

1:18: I'm outside your house.

Quinn made her way to the window and pushed back the curtains. Sure enough, leaning on the hood of her car and waiting with her arms crossed was Santana.

Santana glanced upwards at the movement in the window and smiled at Quinn peering down at her. She waved at her and motioned for her to go unlock the front door.

Quinn glanced behind her and held up one finger. She let the curtains drop and ran her hand through her messy hair. Deciding she better open the front door before Santana did something crazy like throw rocks at her window, she quietly made her way down the stairs and opened the front door. "What are you doing here?" Quinn whispered as she stepped out of her house.

Santana shrugged. "I wanted to talk to you."

"At 1:18 in the morning?" Quinn hissed glancing inside the foyer. She prayed her mom wouldn't wake up.

"Can I come in or what?" Santana asked arching an eyebrow expectantly.

Quinn chewed on her bottom lip. It probably wasn't the greatest idea to invite the girl in so late without her mother's approval. And she certainly wasn't keen on having Santana alone in her bedroom... But when her eyes met Santana's she knew she couldn't say no. "Just… try and be quiet," she instructed ushering the girl into her home.

"Nice room," Santana said looking around curiously. She slipped out of her leather jacket and draped it across Quinn's desk chair.

"Will you be staying long?" Quinn asked sitting on the edge of her bed. She tried not to stare as Santana examined her bedroom in the absolute smallest black dress Quinn had ever seen.

Santana turned and looked at her with a laugh. "Jeez Q, rude much?" Quinn blushed realizing how impolite she must've sounded. Santana shook her head and sat down beside her. "Puck and I broke up. Didn't really want to hang around after that."

Quinn couldn't help the flutter in the pit of her stomach at the news. "I'm really sorry," she said sincerely. And she was sorry. Quinn never wanted to see Santana upset for any reason. Except, Santana didn't look very upset. "Are you, uh, are you alright?"

Santana nodded her head and brushed the comment aside. "It was time. Like, _way_ beyond time. I don't even remember why I started dating him in the first place."

Quinn knew why. Everyone knew why. It was just customary for the Head Cheerleader to date the first string Quarterback. It was rule number one in the high school rule book. What Quinn didn't know, was why Santana chose to come _here_ after breaking up with him.

"Would you like some water?" Quinn offered awkwardly. Santana shook her head.

They sat in silence. Quinn wasn't sure what it was she was supposed to be doing. She had consoled Tina when she and her last boyfriend had broken up, but that was different. They were friends. She and Santana were… well, she wasn't sure _what _they were.

"I guess you want to know why I'm here," Santana said finally. Quinn glanced at her from the corner of her eyes. Santana took a deep breath and turned to face her. "I really like you," she said bluntly. "I've liked you for a pretty long time, actually."

"I like you too, Santana," Quinn said with a small smile.

Santana sighed and shook her head. "No, Quinn. I mean I _like _you, like you."

Quinn looked away quickly, clearly not expecting that response. She shook her head and tried her best to roll her eyes convincingly as if she knew Santana was playing a game with her. "You're unaware of what you're saying, Santana. Clearly you're intoxicated."

"No I'm not," Santana was offended. "I _drove_ here, Q. You think I'd drive here while I was wasted?" She sighed and ran her hand through her hair. "Look, this is awkward for me too, okay? It's hard to talk to you."

Quinn looked down at her hands in her lap. "I get that a lot," she mumbled.

"You're smart and funny and beautiful. But you're in your own little world most of the time. I've tried to step in the bubble you've formed around yourself but you make it pretty damn hard by avoiding just about everyone," Santana continued.

Quinn's head shot up. Her eyes landed on Santana disbelievingly. "You think I'm beautiful?"

"That's what you caught, huh?" Santana smiled and ducked her head. She reached out for Quinn's hands and held them in her own, her thumb gently brushing across the other girl's knuckles. "I've thought you were beautiful since the 8th grade. You walked into my English class wearing that _awful_ blue dress. Your hair was all over the place and your glasses were way too big for your face." She lifted her eyes to meet Quinn's. "I had the biggest crush on you. I still do."

Quinn was speechless. Her heart pounded inside her chest as she stared dumbstruck at Santana peering up at her. "But how…? You're so popular and I'm…"

Santana rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I don't care," she said frustrated. She glanced down at Quinn's hand in her own and sighed. "That's not true, I do care. I love being popular. But it doesn't matter." Her gaze once again met Quinn's. "I'm not Lydia Connors. I would never hurt you."

It still upset her when she was reminded of what happened with Lydia and it still deeply embarrassed her to think. But looking back, Santana had never, not once made fun of her over it like the rest of the school had. In fact, Santana had never teased her, or said hurtful things in her direction since transferring to McKinley in the 8th grade.

Quinn had caught her staring sometimes but she had never been hurtful. Santana rarely spoke to her over the years, but there were times Santana would ask her a question that threw her. Like the time in 10th grade trigonometry when Santana had asked to borrow a pencil even though Quinn had noticed one sticking out of her backpack. Or the time Santana asked to share her French textbook junior year when she knew Santana had stuck her own inside Puck's locker before class.

Looking back, Santana's behavior towards her had always been a little odd. Maybe, just maybe, Santana _did_ in fact like her. "You can have anyone you want," Quinn pointed out; still quite not convinced.

Santana scooted closer towards her. She reached up and gently took off Quinn's glasses and pushed the hair from her eyes. "I just want you," she admitted softly.

Quinn opened her mouth to protest, because really how was it possible that the head Cheerio would want _her_, when she felt Santana's lips lightly press against her own. And just as quickly as the kiss started, it was over and Santana was carefully placing her glasses back on her face. "Uh…"

"I was hoping that maybe you liked me too?" Santana asked nervously.

Quinn stared at the girl with wide eyes. She had been so fixated on being the punch-line; she hadn't stopped to think that maybe Santana was serious. That her intentions were genuine.

"Say something. Please," Santana quietly begged.

Quinn reached out and placed her hands on either side of Santana's face and pulled her close, kissing her with all the confidence she could muster. Her body tensed, still unsure, and immediately relaxed when she felt Santana smile against her lips.

The kiss was chaste and short but Quinn felt something shift. Something between them change. Santana smiled at her, that lopsided goofy smile that Quinn was beginning to think that only she got to see. It made her heart flutter. "It's late. Would you like to borrow some pajamas and stay the night? Maybe take the left side of the bed?"

Santana rolled her eyes. "You are such a nerd." Quinn smiled as Santana pulled her back in for another kiss.


End file.
